Was great. We gated him in the room with us and he slept until 4 am. Then I took him out an he peed after 15 minutes. Took him in the yard for a little play time this morning. When I took him to pee, he went in Nicholas' room and jumped right on top of him.

It took him about 10 minutes to get up the stairs the first time. He looked like a baby giraffe, all knees and elbows. Trying to take the stairs three at a time, not knowing where to put his feet. He gets better every time, but it's so funny to watch.

Time to get creative since he wouldn't go in the crate...what to do with him while I'm at work??

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I don't believe in fate or destiny. I believe in various degrees of hatred, paranoia, and abandonment. However much of that gets heaped upon you doesn't matter - it's only a matter of how much you can take and what it does to you.

My suggestion is frozen kongs with pb and pumpkin in them. Also i have kong treat balls that you put dry treats in and they have to work to get it out. That distracts them from when you're leaving and they focus on the food instead.

Put the kong in the crate..how you do it now sets the tone for the days afterwards. If you want him in a crate you need to put him in it today.

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You can never replace the dog that you lost in your heart~ you can only make your heart a little bit bigger to include a new one.

He's in the crate. I to nudge him in the rest of the way. I gave him a handful of food in his bowl and when. He was almost all the way in I shut the door. I hope he doesn't refuse to go back in. I put a Kong in there yesterday so maybe he will eat it today.He wasn't crying or anything, just looked pitiful and scratched at the door a little then stopped.I hope he does fine.

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I don't believe in fate or destiny. I believe in various degrees of hatred, paranoia, and abandonment. However much of that gets heaped upon you doesn't matter - it's only a matter of how much you can take and what it does to you.

The only thing I can say about the crate is make sure every encounter with it is very positive so he has positive associations with it. It should never be used for punishment. Keep toys in it, comfy bedding. When he lies down for a nap put him in the crate but you can leave the door open if you're with him. Kaden didn't really like his crate at first but now he loves it spending most of his time in there. He naps and sleeps there and runs into it when he is scared or knows dad is not happy with him.

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Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened.-Antone FranceAnimals share with us the privilege of having a soul.-Pythagoras

Agreed, KivaLuver. All good things to those who crate (my edited idiom for Erie's mealtimes; he gets fed in the crate so that raw chicken and kibble doesn't end up all over my floor).

He sounds a lot like Kahaus when I first brought him home. New place, new people, new scary crap everywhere, and a HUGE dog with HUGE separation anxiety issues. Windowsill, doors, doorframes = escape hatches and they are the first things dogs with separation anxiety will destroy in a panic. Kahaus decimated: my bedroom door, a garage door frame, two gates (one was $150!), and several parts of a fence, AND ran headlong into a locked glass door which he hurled his entire bodyweight against one time.

I think today's experience shows that the crate is not going to work for him, at least not this style. You might look into desensitizing him to the crate and getting a stronger one (they have ones with higher quality bars and latches to contain strong breeds like bullies; I know that PetEdge sells them, among others). When desensitizing Kahaus to the crate, I would spend time with the crate in the back yard, just tossing treats near it, inside it, letting him wander in, not really pushing anything. Gradually, I got him to get inside the crate and wait for food. Then I would close it for seconds. Then minutes. Then minutes with me walkign away briefly in between. Then a quick trip to the grocery store, etc. Eventually he learned that being in the crate wasn't forever; I always came back. And being abandoned was his biggest fear. Some dogs have different fears about containment, so that won't be enough to satisfy them, but it's a start.

Another idea would be to see what other containment or dogsitting option are available to you while you're away. Do you have the means to set up a sturdy, outdoor dog run? That gives him space to move and go potty during the day, while being slightly more secure and contained than just your fence could provide. Or to hire someone to watch him or walk him every few days while you're gone so that he's not alone, panicking, and chewing at escape hatches all day?

Thankfully I have the weekend to work on it with him. First thing is zip tying the crate for extra sturdiness until I can find a heavy duty one. Last night he spent some time in there quietly lying down and again this morning for about 20 minutes. He didn't hesitate to go in and he also didn't cry to get out, he laid down calmly. I am determined to make this work!

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I don't believe in fate or destiny. I believe in various degrees of hatred, paranoia, and abandonment. However much of that gets heaped upon you doesn't matter - it's only a matter of how much you can take and what it does to you.

It sounds like you're using a wire framed crate. I never liked those. Every one I tried got demolished by a dog who wanted out. I started using the plastic, travel type crates with the wire door. They didn't succumb to escape attempts. That's what Kaden has now.

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Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened.-Antone FranceAnimals share with us the privilege of having a soul.-Pythagoras

He's in his crate again now. This is the third time and he's doing good.I have to make a point to look online at crates. I haven't seen one of the airline type big enough for him. He's in the biggest wire one I could find which is 48 inches long and its just night enough for him to stand in. He can't lay flat on his side in there because it isn't wide enough for his giraffe legs.

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I don't believe in fate or destiny. I believe in various degrees of hatred, paranoia, and abandonment. However much of that gets heaped upon you doesn't matter - it's only a matter of how much you can take and what it does to you.